Editor Modes (View / Design / Implement)
Every BPMN editor runs in one of three modes. The mode decides which surface you get on the canvas — from a plain readonly viewer up to the full Camunda modeler — so you can dial the tooling up or down without leaving the tab.
The three modes
- View — a readonly bpmn-js viewer. No palette, no editing; pan, zoom, and read the diagram. Good for reviewing a model you don't want to change.
- Design — an engine-neutral, editable surface. Model the process shape (tasks, gateways, flows, lanes) without any Camunda execution properties. This is what engine-neutral
.bpmnfiles open in. - Implement — the full Camunda modeler: the complete properties panel, element templates, linting, and inline script editing for the model's execution platform (Camunda 7 or Camunda 8).
Availability
View and Design are always available. Implement requires a Camunda execution platform stamped on the model — on an untagged (engine-neutral) model there is nothing to implement against, so it is greyed out with an explanatory tooltip.
| Model | View | Design | Implement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Untagged (engine-neutral) | ✅ | ✅ | ⛔ greyed out |
| Tagged (Camunda 7 / Camunda 8) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Implement stays greyed out for as long as the model carries no execution platform. Opening an untagged model never stamps one on automatically — the document is left exactly as it is.
Switching modes
A segmented mode strip sits in the properties-panel header. Click View, Design, or Implement to switch the current editor's surface. When the properties panel is collapsed, the strip shrinks to a single-letter badge (V / D / I) showing the active mode.
Switching between Design and Implement on a tagged model is a live toggle — the model stays loaded and undo history survives. Any switch that involves View recreates the surface, preserving the viewport and selection.
Persistence and the default mode
Mode is remembered per editor: switch a tab to Design, move away, and it reopens in Design when you come back.
An editor that has no remembered mode is seeded from the miragon.bpmnModeler.defaultMode setting (implement | design | view, default implement). On an untagged model implement is unavailable, so the seed falls back to Design.
Creating an engine-neutral file
BPMN Modeler: New BPMN Model offers three choices: Camunda 7, Camunda 8, and Engine-neutral. The Engine-neutral choice scaffolds an untagged model, which opens directly in Design. Choose Camunda 7 or Camunda 8 instead if you want Implement available from the start.